Reincarnation's a Funny Thing
by AizaJay AJ
Summary: There are worlds where his enemies are his allies and where his allies are his enemies. Worlds where he lives an interesting life and others where he lives an ordinary civilian's life. This time, it's different. Instead of just messing with his own world, he gets to mess up other worlds... A reincarnation AU where Ace gets a chance to start chaos in other worlds.
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

**Chapter 1: The Beginning**

* * *

It was at 5 years old when Ace began to notice the reoccurring dreams and visions in the form of either happy imaginations or terrifying nightmares. They would sometimes seep into his reality. He would blank out and – according to the doctors – dissociate. They would come at the most random times with no warning. Ace merely brushes them off, feeling as though it was simpler to deal with them that way.

But Ace could not ignore the reoccurring pattern. While he never recalls much from the dreams and nightmares, the visions always stayed with him. It was like a warning of sorts. Not necessarily a bad thing but it was scaring him as much as it was scaring others.

* * *

 _Age 10_

Ace was at a breaking point. the last five years were spent living with hallucinations and paranoia that crept up his body in cold shivers. It came to the point that his body gave in and he collapsed. images, visions, memories came to him in a blur of voices. Yet, Ace can see everything clearly.

 _"My father is Gol D. Roger."_

 _"Brothers by bond, brothers in crime, bothers 'till we die."_

 _"My name is Gol D. Ace. And as long as I breathe I will stand my ground. Even if it means that I will become a demon."_

 _"Did you know... that if men drink sake, they become brothers?"_

 _"I cannot speak loud enough to reach everyone so please pass on this message. Even though I carry the blood of a demon, even though my very existence is a sin, thank you... for loving me."_

 _"Whatever you do, do NOT forget."_

 _"This whole mess started because of me... and I'm going to end it."_

The voices continued to echo in his head. All of them deep and filled with emotions. they were loud and they continued to bounce off the walls of his mind, pounding against his skull. the ringing against his ears would not stop, chanting in a tune that screeched at him. His head was close to exploding.

* * *

Ace breathed out a sigh of relief when the voices and the pounding against his head died down. He opened his eyes slowly, afraid of what may or may not be there. All that greeted him was the ocean and the deck of a ship he stood on. The ship was not small nor was it large. It resembled more of a pirate ship that he saw in movies rather than a cruise ship. It was clean, too. The deck polished and none of the ropes seemed to be out of place. Above him was a black flag, flowing with the wind to proudly show off the skull with an orange cowboy hat and two 'smileys', one frowning and the other smiling.

It had only occurred to him a second later that the ship was moving. The wind blew a steady yet strong breeze, allowing the scent of the salty water reach him. The birds above sang an old and familiar tune. The sound of the waves hitting the side of the ship eased his tensed body.

"So you finally show up after 30? 40 lives?" The voice made him jump. Ace whisked around to face a man. The man wore no shirt, only wearing a pair of pants, boots, a beaded necklace and an orange cowboy hat with smileys. He sported an awfully large scar on his chest. His cheeks were dusted lightly with freckles, eyes a dark grey, full of life and wisdom. His midnight hair blew with the wind, framing his face.

"You..." It was like staring at a mirror, a mirror that shows what he would look like in the future. "You're... me?" Once again, Ace's head was pounding, waiting to explode. "What's going on?"

The man chuckled, apparently finding his situation hilarious. "Slow down. You're not the first to find this confusing"

"The first?"

"Trust me," the man chuckled once more, "It only gets confusing. Especially for you. From what I heard, you sent a lot of them through hell and back."

"Who's 'them'?"

"Your past selves. Surely you've seen their memories."

Ace had. Those visions and dreams, even the nightmares, were all memories. But they were not his. Those memories... are my past selves?

Seeing Ace's obvious disbelief, Older-Ace – because what else can the ten-year-old Ace call the man? – sighed. "Long story short, you're the 30th or 40th reincarnation. I don't know, I lost count after the 16th."

"Is that how reincarnation works? Because that's a lot of lives."

Older-Ace shrugged, "I suppose. I never really got time to look into it. "His mouth formed a grin, nothing malicious, the man was friendly and patient, reminding him of his father's signature grin. Ace wondered if the man was the one who always explains to the many different Aces. "Anyways, you – I mean, _we_ are a slightly different case. While most who are reincarnated could not remember their past lives – and if they do, they only remember the life before their own – _we_ remember all of our lives."

Ace glanced up at the black flag. "So I was a pirate?"

Said pirate laughed nervously, hand reaching up to scratch the nape of his neck absentmindedly – a nervous habit that the younger Ace was often reminded by many. "It's a little more complicated than that. You see, instead of reincarnating in the same universe in the same timeline, _we_ reincarnate in different universes. For example, _I_ came from a world where I am a pirate and _you_ came from a world that is very advanced in terms of technology." Sensing Ace's disbelief, Older-Ace decided to conclude the explanation, "It'll make sense once you get used to it."

It did not make sense. Ace was sure his head was actually going to explode – is it just him or is there a lot of head-exploding? – But then again, that was the only explanation that his young mind can process and accept. He was quite smart – more like 'too curious' – for his age, always asking for answers. Speaking of answers to his curious mind...

"Where are we? How did I get here?"

The man chuckled, "I'm surprised that isn't your first words to me. Your past selves did not recognize the similarities at first but it seems as though you got more of the brains than most at this age." Older-Ace hummed in thought, "But then again, we always either end up being the strong and reckless type or the sadistic tactician type."

"...Sadistic?"

He shrugged, "Not always. The only real explanation that I got for that is that it's a D. thing. I try not to question it. But to answer your question. This," he gestured to the ship they stood on, "is the Piece of Spadille. The first ship I boarded and sailed through Blues and to the Grand Line... Well, until I was kidnapped." The corner of his lips twisted from a grin to a nostalgic smile, remembering an old memory.

He must be one of the first reincarnations. He must've missed something or someone from his old life. Ace wondered if they were cursed for an eternity of an endless loop of reincarnation.

Older-Ace shook out of the memories, noticing Ace's worried look. "Don't worry, I'm not stuck here. I see them all the time. Remember, I'm you." He shook his head, deciding to change the subject. "Anyways, in terms of how you got here, well..." He paused, trying to find an easy explanation. "You didn't go anywhere. This whole thing is a figment of your imagination. I wouldn't actually say that it's your imagination. Rather, one of your memories."

"You mean one of my past memories."

Older-Ace grinned, "Yup! You're catching on pretty quickly. I'm surprised that you didn't try to kill me or threaten me. I guess you have to be different from the rest because of what you'll end up doing later on."

Ace was almost afraid to ask. "What will I be doing?"

The man shrugged, "Don't know. I don't think it's anything too life-threatening."

Ace can only nod, hoping to understand later, like how the adults say that he will understand when he's older.

The pirate chuckled after a moment of silence. "You know, I've been waiting specifically for you."

Ace frowned, wondering if he should be worried. "Why?"

"Because you have influenced the worlds in such an... interesting way."

"Me? How so?"

Older-Ace shook his head, "It's best not to say in case it may turn for the worst." They stood there for a moment. The man smiled, he walked over to the young Ace and kneeled down to eye-level. "You're about to wake up. You'll see me again. Maybe when you get to the part that I'm waiting for, or maybe before that. But until then..." He took Ace's hand and placed something on his palm. Ace looked down at his hands holding a single large red bead. Looking up, he eyes the red-beaded necklace that rested around the man's neck. Older-Ace patted Ace's hair before standing up and walking away. This was the first time Ace saw the man's back. The tattoo of a cross and a grinning face under a white crescent that resembles a mustache stared back at him proudly as Older-Ace walks away. There was some scarring at the edges of the face. Ace assumed the tattoo was to cover up the scar of some ugly wound that man had in his life.

"Oh!" Ace's attention went back to the man. "You might want to make sure to keep up with your academics and physical abilities. I have a feeling you'll need it." Those last words remained with Ace as well as the rest of the knowledge he attained about himself. His vision began to narrow and spots danced in front of him before he was engulfed by a blinding white void.

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Hi! This is my first story on this site so I'm still getting used to the whole system and formatting.**

 **So a bit of how I'm going to set this out:  
** **I'm going to be placing the Author's Notes at the bottom of each chapter in bold so it should be easy to find.  
** **Any warnings and such about a chapter will be put at the top of the page in bold so please read them just in case (this includes warnings, triggers and a possible change in content ratings for the chapter or possibly the rest of the story)**

 **About the story:  
This story is inspired by a lot of fandoms and One Piece AUs that just sort of molded into one. Basically, it's Ace reincarnating but instead of reincarnating in the same universe or timeline, this one has Ace reincarnating in different universes. The bonus bit is that Ace remembers each one in the form of memories (like how you would normally remember things that stood out the most instead of the finer details). In this world, as hinted a few times in this chapter and the summary, Ace will be going to other worlds and most likely going to cause chaos and give the people in those dimensions a hell of a ride.  
I already know what kind of AU Ace is going to be living in but I'm still debating on what kind of AU he'll be going to first (assuming that you guys are interested enough to see the story through) but it will be set as an AU in the One Piece world.  
**

 **Just a heads up:  
** **I will not be involving any type of romance other than what is canon. The closest romance that you might get are hints that you may take as romance or friendship, or a possible gag, or it just happens to be in a side conversation. But otherwise, no romance will be focused on in this story.**

 **Depending on how many are interested in the story in the next few chapters will determine how far I want to continue the story.**

 **I cannot promise updates being consistent but I'll try.**

 **English is not my first language so please forgive any grammar and spelling mistakes. I'll try to edit at least twice for each chapter but I could have missed something.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated, it helps determine who is interested in the story (this includes constructive criticism and ideas for the story).**

 **That's all for now. Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **~AJ**


	2. Chapter 2: His World Part I

**Chapter 2: His World Part I**

* * *

 _7 years later_

"ACE!" A voice, loud and clear, shook him from his wandering thoughts. His head snapped towards the direction of his mother's voice, his hand slowly moving away from his bracelet. Long, wavy strawberry blonde hair fell to frame Rogue's freckled face. Eyebrows furrowed and soft brown eyes were laced with worry, staring deep into Ace's eyes as though trying to look into his soul. She might as well be. His mother, caring and compassionate she was with a dash of stubbornness, was a woman with many talents. One was the ability to perceive the emotions and troubles of one by a glance to the 'windows of the soul'. It was scary at times but Ace found himself thanking this mysterious ability.

"You're dissociating again." Rogue's voice barely came out audible for Ace's ears. He hated hearing his mother's usually soothing voice like this. Trembling and low, barely heard. She set down the clothes she was folding in the suitcase before sitting next to him.

Ace sent a reassuring smile despite knowing that it may be in vain. "My mind was just elsewhere."

Rogue shook her head, disagreeing with his response. "I should just cancel the trip. I can't risk it."

"Mom, you can't. It's the first business trip you went in years. You can't just cancel it. Besides, I was actually thinking of something. I was not dissociating."

His mother sent a disapproving look, making Ace wince. "The last time we let it be, you spent three days unconscious and raising the hospital's roof with your fever and-"

"The next three days stuck in the hospital and the following three weeks under house arrest by you and dad."

Rogue narrowed her eyes, voice low and dangerous, "Don't you sass, Portgas D. Ace. Not at something like this."

Ace made the wise choice to not push it. He knew how much this subject hurt his parents. "What were you saying?"

She sighed, taking a few breaths. "A business trip to Brazil. It's only for three days so I thought that you and your dad would be alright. I already prepared three days' worth of food in the fridge. Just heat it up."

Ace huffed, "We only set the kitchen on fire _once_."

"By toasting bread." Once again, Rogue sighed. "You're so lucky that it was the day before we moved houses and Boss was kind enough to lend some money for that 'unfortunate event'."

Ace can only laugh sheepishly when Rogue half-heartedly glared at him. "When are you leaving?"

"Tonight. It was a last minute trip."

"Business trips can be last minute?"

Rogue's breath hitched, drawing Ace's attention. She began stuttering, "Uh, yes. Yes, um… Well, it is only a three-day trip."

Ace wondered how his mother, who skipped on business trips in the last eight years, managed to get a last minute three-day trip. He decided to let it be.

Rogue suddenly stood up straight, making Ace jump. "Anyways, I already called your Uncle Dragon. He is on standby if you need anything."

Ace lit up. "Can Luffy come?"

Rogue smiled softly at him. "No. He has to study for his end of year exams and you have yours for finishing High School."

"Now I'm regretting skipping a grade," Ace pouted. "Fine. But I get to go shopping Christmas presents with him first."

* * *

Ace's fingers rubbed the red bead on his bracelet as he hummed to the tune playing in his headphones. After meeting Older-Ace – whom he started calling Fire Fist as more of the man's memories come to him – he found his nervous habit changing from rubbing the nape of his neck to rubbing his thumb on the bead's smooth surface. The habit – that was no longer just for nervousness but also for boredom and when his mind was running wild – only increased when it was fashioned into a bracelet with a black braided string threaded through the bead and other smaller black beads. It was adjustable, able to fit his wrist with just a thug of the end strings.

Things had changed since he met Fire Fist. As the years go by, the memories from his past lives came with increasingly vivid details, remembering most of them. Some still terrified him and some made him ask 'why' far too many times. His dissociating tendencies had decreased in length of time, no longer ending with a panic look as he – just as Fire Fist promised – slowly understands it and comes to terms with it. It was hard not to believe in the fact that he was seeing his many past lives. His ten-year-old self had completely accepted it and, normally, his seventeen-year-old self would have a hard time believing it if it were not the fact that it kept happening.

He never told anyone, though. He once searched for any similar cases only to find none. He assumed that it was not something that was to be put out to the open so he kept quiet. There were times wondered if he was going to live as a normal civilian or if something interesting was to happen. Fire Fist had made it sound like he was going to do something big.

Ace shook out of his thoughts when his feet guided him through around a sharp corner to the house at the end of the street. The house was designed to adorn a modern white and grey farmhouse look with a fence bordered around the house and freshly mowed lawn. The front lawn was decorated with neatly arranged floral and pants around the border of the lawn, clearly taken care of every day.

Entering through the front door, not bothering with fishing out his key after seeing his father's car parked outside, he took in the lavender and vanilla scent that welcomed him. Just as the exterior of the house was organized and decorated beautifully, the interior of the house was arranged in a simple modern white and grey look with house decorations to recreate the family's warm and welcoming gesture. Potted plants, big and small, were placed at empty corners and table tops, all of which watered and cared for regularly. There were vases placed accordingly on shelves and on tables, filling in the little gaps around the well-placed furniture. On the walls were framed photos of a happy family, smiling towards the camera or at something random.

Walking through the halls, Ace ignored the shouting and yelling, choosing to focus on his music and making his way to the kitchen. After searching for something to eat, he settled with a mandarin. He made his way to the lounge where the voices were coming from, peeling the skin from his mandarin. Leaning against a wall, he began eating his mandarin. He turned down the volume to his music.

His dad, Roger, and his uncle, Dragon, were step-brothers. Despite the fact that they were not blood-related, they share the same dark tousled hair, dark grey eyes, and body type. His mother told him that she took a while to find the difference between the two as they both had the same style growing up. In their adulthood, they took on different styles, making it easier to tell the difference. Roger kept his hair trimmed to just below his ears, still tousled and messy and had taken a liking to the red and navy blue combinations. Dragon's style was slightly darker. His hair was longer, reaching his shoulders and he took on a deep green and navy blue colour combinations. Despite preferring different styles, they both were still the same. They both do things on a whim and needed to be put on a leash when out in public or large crowds. And just like any normal siblings, they fight. Even in adulthood and having a kid both still fight like eight-year-olds. Usually, this was the time when Ace gets to hear the most hilarious things and finds potential blackmail material.

"She's been listed as _off the grid_ and they _disconnected_ her. Do you now know what that means?" Roger was close to tearing his hair, pacing back and forth. Ace wondered what they were talking about.

"I very well know what it means, Roger." Dragon was not shouting like Roger. He was calm with a hint of danger that sent shivers up Ace's spine. "Calm down, will you?"

"How can I? She's been missing for _two days_. It's been over _30 hours_ and we can't even get to her-"

"Who's missing?" Ace could not help the growing worry at the heated conversation. Unlike what he thought was a hilarious argument with potential blackmail material, the argument was heated with worry. His dad had _never_ panicked in a fight with his brother. Never like this.

Roger and Dragon's head snapped towards, finally aware of his presence.

Ace paused his playlist, putting his headphones to rest around his neck. He held onto the mandarin, though. "What do you mean by 'off the grid' and 'disconnected'?"

Roger was the first to shake out of his frozen state. "Nothing." Roger straightened his back, eyes avoiding Ace. "Nothing at all."

Ace's eyes focused on his dad, eyes narrowing slowly into a glare. Though not in a dangerous way, Ace promised pain if something important was being kept from him. "Dad, I may not be the best lie detector but you sure aren't the best liar. What is going on?" Ace's eyes shifted to his uncle's dark eyes. Dragon wore a resigned look that seemed so foreign on him before nodding at him. Ace frowned, _Was that some sort of signal?_

"Roger," Dragon turned to his brother, "It's time."

Roger's eyes widened for a moment, gaze switching between Ace and Dragon a few times. "What?" Roger hissed, "I'm not doing this without Rogue. And, plus, isn't our agreement to tell them at 17? That's not in a few months. Unless I forgot his birthday."

"You didn't forget his birthday," Dragon rolled his eyes. "And yes, we agreed to tell them when they reach 17 but we also agreed to tell them when they start asking questions."

For the first time in a while, Roger wore a surrendered look, his eyes layered with the seriousness that Ace was not used to. Roger took a step forward as Ace took a half-step back. "Listen, Ace, I know you hate being kept from something important but trust us when I say that we do it with your safety in mind. You might want to take a seat."

Ace did. He slowly moved to an armchair just as his dad and uncle moved to the couch. He vaguely remembered some of the 'reveals' going the same way like this in his past lives. Though it was not always the same secret revealed but the reveals were generally what would shape his life in the world that he lived in. If there were no reveals, he was to lead a civilian life or start his own group. If there was a reveal, he would either join that group or make his own group. No reveal had been anything but exciting or important. It always played a factor in his new life.

Ace waited patiently for his dad or uncle to form the words they needed to explain. There were some gears turning and a silent conversation between the two was made before turning their full attention to Ace.

 _To be continued..._

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Hi. Here is the 2nd chapter. I'm sorry if you expected to see something big happening (like the start of a dimension traveling) but I promise that it is for a good reason.**

 **About the chapter:**

 **\- This chapter may be a bit of a disappointment but I promise that it's for a good cause. I need a way to explain the type of life Ace is going to be living in and this is the only way I can think of. So if you're waiting for something more exciting to happen, it won't happen in the next few chapters.**

 **\- This chapter is part I out of II. I was going to put the two chapters together but I ended up realizing that having the two chapters together may be too long compared to other chapters.**

 **\- This chapter has a bit of interaction between Ace, Rogue, Roger and Dragon. It's to give people an idea of what the characters in this world are like.**

 **\- This chapter also hints a lot about Ace's lifestyle and his relationship with other people. There will be more of this in the next chapter.**

 **About the next chapter:**

 **\- The next chapter is due to be out within the week but no promises**

 **\- The next chapter will be a continuation of this chapter and will explain more about Ace's life and the type of life he will end up living.**

 **Thank you for taking the time off your day to read a story that may or may not have the potential to continue.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated. It helps with the writing process and motivation (this includes constructive criticism and ideas for the story).**

 **That's all for now. Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **~AJ**


	3. Chapter 3: His World Part II

**Chapter 3: His World Part II**

* * *

 _Previously:_

 _For the first time in a while, Roger wore a surrendered look, his eyes layered with the seriousness that Ace was not used to. Roger took a step forward as Ace took a half-step back. "Listen, Ace, I know you hate being kept from something important but trust us when I say that we do it with your safety in mind. You might want to take a seat."_

 _Ace did…_

* * *

Ace's right hand reached for his left wrist, his thumb and finger automatically rubbing the red bead. Roger and Dragon – both knowing his terrible habit – glanced at his bracelet then towards each other. They were not saying anything, making Ace's nervousness grow as his hand started tugging on his bracelet.

Dragon from when he caught Roger still staring at him, "What?"

Roger gestured towards Ace's direction. "Go on. You do it."

Dragon glared, "He's _your_ son."

"But-" Roger stopped when Dragon's glare narrowed, daring for him to continue. Ace's dad sighed, pursing his lips and took the time to decide on the best approach before turning to Ace." Son," Roger's voice was low.

 _He only calls me son when something serious is happening._ There were very few cases when Roger calls him 'son'. Times when his dad calls him his 'most favorite son in the world' – to which he would respond with being his ' _only_ son' – but never 'son' unless it was serious.

"Do you know who we work for?"

Ace blinked. That was not the question he expected. "Yeah, some business company thing."

Roger nodded, "Do you know the company name?"

Ace opened his mouth before closing and slowly shaking his head ' no'. _Did I blank out?_

As if reading his mind, Roger responded, "You didn't blank out. We avoided the question."

"…Why?"

"To ensure your safety. We try to keep it as close to the truth as we can so that we feel a little less guilty lying to you. The whole truth was kept under wraps until you reach 17 or you start questioning."

"And I just started questioning you," Ace realized.

Roger nodded. "You see, we work for the Government… sort of."

Ace scoffed, "What? Like the FBI?"

There was silence before Dragon – who had been patient and watching from the sidelines – shrugged, "Well, close enough."

It was then that Ace realized that his life was far from a normal civilian unlike what he originally thought. Not when his dad and uncle – and assumingly his mom – worked for the government as somewhat close to an FBI agent.

Roger explained how they work as a part of a small highly classified organization branching off from the government, their boss that they answer to answering to the Government. "We are a covert organization made up of covert teams. While the FBI and CIA, as you know, are more known and publicly involved, we," gestures at Dragon and himself, "are a more secretive bunch. We work behind the scenes. The FBI and CIA would bust in with their badges and vests stating their allegiance and we go in deep, _deep_ undercover."

Ace felt as though he was understanding the situation quicker than what one may think. Ace was vaguely reminded of his time as part of the Revolutionary Army and the other rebel groups he knew of in his past lives, only, this time, the organization works for the authority. "So… like a top-secret spy organization?" Ace felt as though there was something missing with what he was being told.

Roger shook his head, "No. We gather intel, stop illegal trading and trafficking, expose corrupt individuals, groups or organizations. All traces of us doing it are kept from public knowledge."

Ace blinked, _That's basically the same as the rebel groups._ "Okay so not like a top-secret spy organization… but like a top-secret spy organization." There was a small pause, allowing Ace to take in the information properly. _My dad, mom and uncle – practically the whole family that I know of aside from Luffy – are part of a top secret spy organization that deals with Underworld stuff and follow government orders. It's not the first time I'm part of a government organization nor is it the first time I became a part of a corrupted organization. Because anyone who's smart enough was able to guess that their world leaders are corrupted people._

Roger an Dragon watched as Ace nodded in understanding. "You… understand? You're not going to freak out or hate us for hiding it from you?"

"Well, you just claimed you're not boring business people like I thought you were and you technically didn't lie, just left out some details. No, I'm not mad. You had a good reason." Ace watched them both sigh in relief. It was understandable, he has some anger issues – something that each of his past selves seemed to have at some degree. "So what happened to mom?"

"How did you know we were talking about your mom?" They asked.

Ace shrugged, "Lucky guess?" Truthfully, his dad never panicked like this when it involved other girls, especially not some random missing person. "So… 'off the grid' and 'disconnected'?"

It was Dragon's turn to explain, "It means that she cannot be tracked or communicated and that the government will provide no help. She's basically on her own."

Ace shot off his seat, "What?! That's stupid! If she cannot be tracked or called shouldn't that be the big neon sign to help her? You know what, give me your Boss' number, let me go talk to them."

Dragon's eyebrows rose, "Wow, you do have your mom's Spitfire."

Roger rolled his eyes, "I told you he's more of a 'Portgas' than a 'Gol'." He motioned for Ace to sit down. "We have. In fact, he was the one who informed us of your mom's situation."

Ace sat down. "Wait, he's helping? I thought you said she gets no help from the Government?"

" _We_ work for the Boss. The Boss works for the Government." Dragon explained. "Your mother got her mission directly from the Government, not from the Boss. So, technically, the Government can list her as 'off the grid' and 'disconnect' her without needing to go through the bunch of paperwork with Boss."

Roger then grinned, his serious expression leaving. "But Boss was pretty pissed by that so, being the amazing and scary person he is, he decided to send us a copy of her mission files including the video of the debriefing she got and the records of her last known whereabouts."

Ace pursed his lips, "That's a lot of information."

Roger shrugged, "That's as far as he can help us. He's too busy keeping the Big Boss from sniffing into our business."

Ace's eyes widened, "Your Boss is willing to go against _his_ Boss?"

Dragon shrugged, "We're loosely affiliated with the Government. We're fairly new and not big on rules, too. We have our own ways of dealing with things. In the end, they just have to get over it."

"They pin the blame of Boss, saying that he's responsible for us," Roger added. "Sometimes I think that the Government has something against Boss." Ace wondered if he missed something. That feeling of needing to do something but could not remember what was creeping up his body uncomfortably.

Ace nodded, allowing himself to deal with the confusion and the information dump another time.

There was a quote by someone in his past lives. It was the same words said by different voices.

 _"_ _To live a life without regrets."_

Ace nodded again, this time to himself. "Okay. What do we do?"

Dragon's head shot towards him. "I'm sorry. _'We'_?"

Roger raised his hand, "Don't bother. He has his mom's stubbornness." All three of them know of Rogue's headstrong self. It was another of her 'special abilities'. She can convince anyone of just about anything with a few simple words jumbled in a confusing jigsaw puzzle until you say 'yes'.

Dragon sighed, "Fine." He explained Rogue's mission to gather intel on the contents of some suspicious trading ships in Brazil and how she never gave a status report when her flight landed in Brazil. That was when she was deemed 'off the grid'.

"She checked in on the flight?" Ace asked, receiving a nod. "Got the tickets and even went through the security beep-beep thing?" A nod. "Did she _board_ the flight." There was silence.

"She should've… The government files said that she boarded the flight-"

"Didn't you say that you're loosely affiliated with the Government?" Ace interrupted. There was a strangling silence as his words began to hold weight on the situation they're in. While the world he lived in was more technologically advanced than any other worlds he lived in, it was led by a corrupted system. A system that allows government officials and anybody else to turn a blind eye to human trafficking, slave trading, labor and what he knows from other worlds as violations of human rights. With all that money for building new tech you'd think that they would actually help people, instead, they make weapons and start wars.

Roger took in a deep breath, most likely thinking of how corrupted the Government was. He glanced at Dragon, "She didn't board the flight, didn't she?"

The realization dawned Roger and Dragon quickly. Dragon sighed, muttering something about the Government. Obviously not something good. "Get the red-head to check the security footages. I'll call the Boss to tell him that we solved the mystery."

"Dragon," Roger was already dialing a number, "You do realize that this meant Rogue had not even left the town and that the Government has played us."

"I know." Dragon was also dialing a number on his phone. "It's starting to piss me off. Why do they keep targeting us? We haven't done anything… yet."

Ace's head was moving back and forth between the two. Watching them pace around on their phones, mumbling curses. Their calls were answered about the same time and they ended their call about the same time, muttering a string of curses. It was then that Ace remembered his burning question.

Ace waved his hand to draw his dad and uncle's attention back to him. Their heads whisked towards him, clamping their mouths to not say any more curses. "You hate the government and yet you work for them. Why? You wouldn't work for anyone you despise." Possibilities run through Ace's head, ruling off many to narrow down the possibilities. Knowledge from his past lives came. He remembered the worlds where Uncle Dragon was the leader of the Revolutionary Army, the worlds where his dad willingly opposed the corrupted rulers of kingdoms, the worlds where his mom led armies against a powerful yet corrupted deity.

His head began to feel light, eyes glazed over. His mind was pulling away. His surroundings fading into the void. The void sang a familiar lullaby, his eyes closing, lulling him to the dark. _Not again._ Ace was pulled away from his reality.

* * *

 _Ace blinked, trying to rid of his blurred vision. When his vision cleared, his surroundings were nothing but ashes and fire. The trees were charred and blackened, the soil ashes, and in the distance were raging fires closing in. Looking down, he saw his hands smaller than he remembered. The bracelet was a different design but the bead was still there, larger than his wrist and what he remembered._

 _He looked around frantically, searching for something – or, rather, someone important. "LUFFY!" His voice was young yet raspy, most likely of his sore throat._

 _The fire was closing in on him, eating anything in its path. He had no choice but to turn around and run. He ran as fast as his legs could take him, jumping over the rocks and fallen trees. Above him were what seemed awfully like meteor rocks raining down on him. He kept glancing up and making a zig-zag pattern to avoid getting anywhere near where the rocks may fall. He was small yet fast. But he did not know how far he can go. He was panting heavily and his legs were sure to give up on him soon._

 _Ahead of him was a cliff, leading to the ocean. Before he knew it, he jumped over the cliff, not caring if there were any rocks below him or anything that may risk his life. He just jumped._

* * *

"Ace?" A hand sat on his shoulder, pulling him back to reality – to _his_ reality. His head turned to his dad. The look was all too familiar. His mom wore it the day before. Even if he was just thinking, they would always give him the _look_. It made him guilty about his condition, no matter how much of it was his fault. He just happens to be born into the world as the current reincarnation of the many other Aces.

"What was I saying?" Ace muttered, avoiding the worried looks from his dad and uncle. "I was asking a question. Oh!" Ace turned to Dragon, "What does Shanks have to do with this? He's the only red-head that you know so I just assumed…" Ace trailed off when Dragon continued staring at him with the _look_. "What did I forget?" Ace's voice was barely audible.

Dragon shook his head, deciding to change the subject – which Ace was more than alright with. "It's alright, the question does not need to be answered now. As for Shanks, he's our resident hacker. The Boss hired him a few months ago after some… convincing."

Ace was too afraid to ask.

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **As promised, Chapter 3 is out.**

 **About the chapter:**

 **\- This chapter is longer than the previous chapters because I need to explain a lot of things about Ace's world**

 **\- Ace's world has corrupted leaders. They start wars and use the money to make more weapons. Slavery, human and arms trafficking, forced labor, all those bad stuff is happening often in this world.**

 **\- The world is mentioned to be technologically advanced. I would say that it is similar to modern technology with the fancy tech that you see in movies.**

 **\- I would say that this is not a modern au but realized that if I say that I would probably be lying since it does include stuff in modern times. I'll just say that it is set in modern times (probably a bit more into the future).**

 **\- So... Ace is going to be a spy and (technically) working for the corrupted government. Believe me when I say that there is a reason why I decided for Ace to take up this occupation. It'll be mentioned later (if I get the motivation to continue this story).**

 **\- There is a reason why Dragon and Roger avoided answering Ace's question.**

 **About the next chapter:**

 **\- Focusing more on Ace's personality and more interaction between Ace, Roger and Rogue**

 **\- Possible introduction of another character**

 **Thank you for taking the time off your day to read this story and sorry if you expected something more**

 **English is not my first language so please forgive any mistakes**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated (including constructive criticism and ideas)**

 **That's all for now. Hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **~AJ**


	4. Chapter 4: His World Part III

**Chapter 4: His World Part III**

* * *

It had been a few days since Roger and Dragon had infiltrated an abandoned warehouse and rescued Rogue with the help of Shanks. It had only been a few months since he met Shanks, but all he ever did was impress Ace with his computer skills and drinking abilities. He could hold his liquor – because it was apparently a good way to earn money – and was amazing at acting drunk when he needed to get information. He was what Ace believed to be an ethical hacker. Whether he was certified or not, Ace did not bother asking. Shanks never bragged or discussed the details of his job other than the fact that he sometimes works at home and sometimes 'somewhere elsewhere'. If Ace had to guess, he would assume that Shanks was truly an ethical hacker – Shanks was not the best liar but Ace would argue that he was not the worst – and had recently been found by whoever Roger, Dragon and Rogue's 'Boss' is and had been working with them since. If Ace was, to be honest, he too would have made extra effort to find Shanks and convince the man to join his side. Shanks was no amateur when it came to computer programming and using technology to get what he wanted. On his own, he could probably do more damage with his computer than anyone else with an array of weapons at hand.

Which was how Roger and Dragon found Rogue at another state – fortunately still in the country – only hours after they called Shanks. The process of it was never explained to Ace for security and safety reasons – he was not too interested, to begin with.

Although, he did eavesdrop…

Only thirty minutes had been used trying to track Rogue's location. Some of which was wasted because the abductors kept moving in an unusual pattern, making it a little difficult for Shanks to track. While the rest of those minutes was because Shanks was a perfectionist and managed to get the abductors' full name, home address, childhood home address, theirs and their family's social security number and bank details, before finally setting up a private jet to take Roger and Dragon to the location.

The first few hours of waiting were similar to a decade of worries and anxiousness building. And when he finally got the call from Shanks, he dreaded for another few seconds as Shanks listed the injuries his family sustained while assuring him constantly that those were the worst of it.

When they returned, Roger and Dragon were bruised and had cracked ribs, while Rogue returned with a broken arm, a cut on her temple, and more bruises and cuts. Ace had not been able to find out what happened to the abductors, but he did not care.

As of the moment, Rogue and Ace sat in the car with Ace behind the wheel, ready to head home from the hospital Rogue had been discharged. "I'm so proud of you, Ace," Rogue had said, placing her good hand on Ace's shoulder. The weight of her hand on Ace's shoulder was all the comfort he truly needed. "For helping your father and uncle get me out of that situation, thank you."

Ace snuck a glance at his mother's arm wrapped in a plaster cast and resting on a sling, before starting the car. The engine started, the noise no longer surprising Ace after a year of driving. Ace let out a breath, "Honestly, I don't think I would ever forgive myself if I didn't pick up what was wrong, and got dad and uncle Dragon to tell me. I'm just glad that I found out instead of waiting until New Year. _That_ would be a real bummer to find out on the day I'm supposed to celebrate my birthday and a new year."

Rogue chuckled, "They told you about our 'oath', huh?" She nodded towards the road, "Let's go. I'm out of the hospital and I have already given my statement to send my abductors to a nice stay at a cold, dark prison. I mean, I have to go to court but let's just ignore that for now."

Ace shook his head, a smile on his face. Slowly, he drove out of the parking lot and made his way home.

"Keep your eyes on that bicycle guy-"

"Mom!" Ace half-heartedly glared at the 'bicycle guy' he was passing.

"Oh, Ace. Let me worry about our own safety." She grinned, taking out her phone and sending a message to someone. Who it was, Ace did not try to interpret. "Besides, I need fresh air. The hospital is way too dull and the air in there is heavy with the scent of sterilizers and hand sanitizers. And before that, the abductors chose a warehouse full of cobwebs and creepy crawlies." Her nose scrunched in disgust. Rogue was fearless. She was not afraid of her captors, the threat of a life sentence or Grandpa Garp. She was not afraid of anything. Except for perhaps the tiniest and most harmless bug. She could be surrounded by a nest of wasp or the floor could be covered with the most venomous and meanest snakes, and she would walk through them without a blink. But if a single christmas beetle landed on her hair, she would be willing to burn her hair. "The least they can do is pick a decent place where I can easily find a hiding spot that does not house cockroaches," she continued, "Heads up, if you wanna hide from 'amateur-level' abductors who only have their eyes on the money, vents and overhead catwalks are good places, even if you have lie still next to a wasp nest. Your path is unpredictable, there are many escape paths _and_ you hear everything."

Ace blinked in disgust, "Okay? Gross but thanks for the tip." He glanced at her for a moment, giving her one of the famous 'D grin', as Fire Fist constantly said in his past memories. "You know what's the best? Knocking out one of the abductors who has an easy shift and personality to follow and dressing up as them. You can walk freely, get information _and_ you don't have to go anywhere near the cobwebs and bugs. You'd be surprised how much it-" Ace almost ran over a pedestrian, "Uh… works in real life but not put in movies enough."

Rogue raised a questioning eyebrow. Ace was unsure if it was because of his comment or if it was because he also ran over an old lady. "Oh, really? How would you know that?"

Ace froze. It became an unusual habit of Ace to incorporate his past lives into his present life that Ace had many troubles explaining that he ended up ratting out some _small_ secrets. "Uh… Lu and I may or may not have used the same technique to sneak into his mom's office building."

Rogue could only shake her head, unable to find a proper response. "We'll talk about that later. Okay. So, big news. I just got word that you have been officially offered a place in the Organisation as one of its youngest members as an intern."

"'Organisation'?"

"Roger's fault. He's not gifted with giving names but neither are we creative enough to suggest something else."

"What does that say about my name?"

"Please don't ask for another ten years." She let out an exasperated sigh. Clearly, the memory had been an embarrassing moment. _Must be Dad._ "Okay. Back on topic. I know you have your end-of-year exams coming up and University entrance exams to prepare for right after. I already talked to the Boss and he told me that he will accommodate around your school hours, singing lessons and your martial arts and parkour clubs, and the part-time work you do for Thatch and Namur. Somehow."

Ace raised his eyebrows at the list, "Wow. That's a lot."

"Oh, so it's _now_ that you think it's a lot."

Ace rolled his eyes. He had taken Fire Fist's advice to heart. He covered the 'basics' on his list; academics, music, physical activities that require discipline, as well as making some money. It took a while to get used to but he figured – he _hoped_ – that it would be worth it. "What if I already made my decision? I know it's maybe too soon to decide but I have been thinking about it since Dad and Uncle revealed the family business-"

"Luffy's not in on it."

"I hope not. I don't know what I'd do if I figured it out later than he did."

Rogue smiled. The competition between Luffy and Ace had always been the gold event in family reunions. "What about school now and uni next year? Don't tell me. Gap year?"

Ace nodded.

"Aww. My little boy is moving from the private schooled awkward teen with zero free time to an almost-college man being all responsible and mature by thinking about the future."

Ace rolled his eyes, though he couldn't help but let a smile form on his lips. "I'll be working, technically be in the army _and_ traveling the world."

"Wait. What about housing?"

"I was hoping I could stay. As much as I want to live a life full of debt and takeout food, I was hoping I could take the chance to explore the house one more time and find all the neat spy stuff that you've been hiding from me."

"Oh, Ace," Rogue shook her head, "We don't bring 'work talk' into the house, we also don't bring 'work gadgets' into the house unless it is absolutely necessary."

Ace gave her a disbelief look.

Rogue let out a defeated sigh, "They're all in the basement 'cause you and Luffy don't go there."

Ace gave her a side look.

"Fine. They're all over the house." Rogue rolled her eyes. "Oh, Ace, you won't be taking on missions this early. You would have to go through a physical and psychological evaluation. If you fail, which is very likely, you would go through training that is likely to take over your gap year."

Ace groaned.

"Eyes on the road."

"Right. Sorry."

"So, you still in?" Rogue smiled at Ace, knowing full well what the answer was. "Avoid the pothole"

"See the pothole. Unavoidable." Ace rolled his eyes at the question, "And, yes, still in. Even though I might spend a year training, I will still be in."

Rogue sighed, "You're still going to try to get on-field as soon as possible using any means necessary."

Ace grinned, "Unavoidable."

Rogue couldn't help but laugh. "Perfect. I'll tell the Boss. He'll organize the party just before your exams-" Ace frowns "-and you'll have your speech ready by then-"

"Excuse me?" Ace turned left at a corner, suddenly feeling as though he was going to need to stop the car soon. "Do you not remember what happened last time?"

Rogue gave him a look, "How could I forget? We had to explain to the landlady how the kitchen caught fire when you were too busy puking to check on the toast."

"You know, I was wondering where you were getting all that money." Ace shook his head, "Can't you just knight me into the Organisation privately?"

"It's a formal introduction. Everyone has to do it."

Ace let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. But I'm leaving as soon as I finish my dessert."

Rogue shrugged, "Unavoidable. We should also turn right here and stop by Izo's to get a suit tailored for you-"

Ace's foot slammed on the breaks, luckily close to a parking spot, and pulled over. "WHAT?! I already agreed to the party _and_ speech, and that's as far as I go."

Rogue, completely used to Ace's absolute hatred for formal events – clothes and all – had expected Ace's reaction and was already holding her casted arm steady from the car sudden stop. "You know, for a boy who wears the same pair of jeans, flannel jacket and shirt, you're unnecessarily picky."

* * *

"What? No," Izo said without a thought. Izo was a tailor and the owner of the Shiro Tailor Shop, a very nice and successful shop that sells Izo's own creations as well as a reliable place to modify any outfit. While his family was famous, Izo had earned it as 'Izo' and not as 'another Newgate'. His works were showcased in magazines, runways and as one of the top celebrity designer choices in several countries. Ace wondered sometimes as to why Izo wished to stay in a lesser amusing – though, still big – city than another place where rich and famed walked the pavements every day. He got his answer when he met the Newgate family.

The Newgate's was one of the most influential families in the country and was the, as the media says, the golden children of the city itself. They gave plenty to charity and genuinely loves the city. It also helped that they all were charismatic, charming and overall the literal embodiment of sunshine. Well, that was what the media calls them. Ace was not going to lie that he would have believed they were snobs if not the fact that they were close friends of the Gol family – which became the Gol-Portgas-Monkey family after the whole marriage thing. It was one of the things that were consistent in most of the universes. Ace had theorized that it was because of his own past-selves' influence. When the Whitebeards became Fire Fist's family in the first timeline, the rest of the 'Ace's followed suit in the following timelines simply because they usually felt welcomed by the family – Ace would not like to talk about that one disastrous timeline. In this world, Ace had no need to do much. When he was born, it was practically by default.

"Please, Izo. Just one three-piece suit. Hopefully, he won't grow too much." Rogue's eyes looked at Izo pleadingly. If Ace was not seething and planning the massacre of an entire town – he would have settled with his mother but not even the rude cashier at the grocery store in the next two blocks was crazy enough to mess with the legendary Portgas Spitfire – he would have sat down and watched the live show play out in front of him.

Izo shook his head. "Rogue, I care about you and all, but your son is a lost cause. The last time this happened, I have to close down the shop for two weeks for it to get repaired."

"That was when he was young and impulsive. He's mature now."

"He's sixteen and already heading to college."

"He's almost seventeen."

"That doesn't matter!"

Rogue rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll babysit Haruta for two months."

"Deal." Izo took Ace's arms, already grabbing a few suits from the clothes rack while dragging Ace to the dressing rooms. "May take a few hours – or days – so go and grab yourself something to eat."

* * *

 **Author's Notes**

 **Here is Chapter 4. The very _very_ long-awaited Chapter 4.**

 **Long story short, I was in a bind. Not a 'writer's block' or anything. You see, the One Piece storyline is growing constantly. And it's not like a linear plotline with tiny subplots. Its plotline is weird, crazy and most likely more insane than the New World. I still love One Piece. But, because of the growing plot and the growing number of characters, I don't think I can keep my original plan for this story going. You see, this story's original plot was supposed to be able to use the original plot as the base of the characters' backgrounds. But since One Piece is so broad with an amazingly thought-out plot that remains a mystery, I can't do that. And so I took the decision to definitely _not_ abandon this story so soon and come up with an entirely different plot that may or may not steer away from a lot of things that are already in cannon.**

 **Hopefully, you'll forgive the year-long hiatus and still be interested in this story.**

 **Side note: I have about six more chapters planned out so I am likely going back to weekly updates. But there will be no guarantees or promises.**

 **About the chapter:**

 **\- More on what this world's Ace is like and the family and friends that he has.**

 **\- Meet Izo, owner of the Shiro Tailor Shop ('Shiro' means white in reference to 'Shirohige')**

 **\- Kind of a small introduction to the Newgate family**

 **About the next chapter:**

 **\- Possibly meeting a new character**

 **\- A little bit more on the Organisation (I am not good with naming things so you're gonna get a lot of names like that)**

 **Question:**

 **\- Can you guess who the Boss is?**

 **Thank you for reading this story and I'm for being in an unannounced hiatus. I'm one of those who don't like seeing an update and see that it is actually an Author's Note saying that they are on a hiatus, which is why I didn't put anything about it.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated. It helps with the writing process and motivation (this includes constructive criticism, ideas for the story or any theories).**

 **That's all for now. See you in the next chapter.**

 **~AJ**


	5. Chapter 5: His World Part IV

**Chapter 5: His World Part IV**

* * *

 **AUTHOR'** **S NOTES:**

 **WARNING: Talks of mental health disorders or illnesses and traumatic events involving said disorders or illnesses. It is in the second half of the chapter which is after the flashback. It begins with the words** _ **"After Ace was formally introduced to the Organisation".**_ **There are Author's Notes (AN) where it begins and ends.**

* * *

 _Flashback to 7 years ago_

 _Izo raised a delicate eyebrow at the singular red bead in his hand. "Usually, you only come in when Rogue is dragging you. And now you come in on your own asking me to turn this into a necklace? Do your parents, or at least your uncle, know where you are?"_

 _Ace smiled in an innocent way, "Don't you remember? Your family offered to look after me in the three weeks I'm on house arrest and it's your turn today."_

 _Izo's eyebrows furrowed, confused and trying to remember when he was informed that. It didn't take him too long before he saw it. Behind Ace's innocent smile was a barely hidden mischievous look that he had seen on Thatch and Haruta the first few times they experimented on the practice of pranking the family as a past time. He had distinctly remembered the two discussing it as an 'icebreaker'. Izo remembered that it had brought the family together quite quickly since Thatch had introduced it within the thirty minutes he first walked in the Newgate Estate – if you would call chasing their newest member of the family around the manor and the spacious land that they own a family bonding. Ever since then, the family knew that it was a common occurrence to pull pranks whenever anyone was feeling a little down._ _With that in mind, he hoped that Thatch and Haruta had not been the one to taint Ace so quickly. Though, it could perhaps set some peace in his mind if he knew the source._

 _Shaking his head, Izo let a smirk slowly curl on his painted lips. "And I assume that I also said that I took you with me to my store?" He asked in mock curiosity._

 _Ace's 'innocent' smile widened in a creepy way, "Are you getting old, Mr. Izo? You seem to forget so easily lately."_

 _The man's eye twitched, irritated by Ace's claims. "Ace, what has Thatch and Haruta been teaching you?"_

 _Ace had only laughed, "Nothing much. Just how to get away with everything."_

" _You mean manipulation? Did you hit your head and became a psychopath?"_

 _Ace once again laughed._

 _Izo sighed, turning his attention back to the red bead in his hand. The bead was fashioned from a red stone that had some marbled streaks of brown. The craftmanship beautiful and delicate despite being so small and simple. Its shine reflected the natural light from outside, giving a smooth sheen that he could not help but admire. Izo was always one for details and hidden meanings. So when others would see an unassuming bead, he saw the beauties of the earth compact into something the size of his thumb. "When red jaspers are cut to be made as a necklace, you would usually have more beads made from the same stone or at least stones of similar appearance."_

" _Red jasper?" Ace tilted his head to the side in curiosity._

 _Izo placed the bead on the counter. He gestured Ace to come closer while taking a measuring tape. "It's one of the oldest known gemstones. In ancient times, it is known as the stone of perseverance." He wrapped the measuring tape around Ace's left wrist loosely. He muttered something under his breath that Ace would surely not catch before writing the measurement down on a notepad. "Perseverance: steady persistent in a course of action or purpose especially in difficult times. In Theology, it means an act of continuing in a state of grace till the end, which would lead to eternal salvation." He took the notebook and began sketching something on it. His pencil glided across the page in ease and comfort. It was not the first time he designed simpler and smaller jewellery no matter what Thatch said about his addiction to being 'over-the-top'. He had a design in mind that could match Ace's simplistic and lack of fashion taste. "The stone is believed to maintain a person's passion for his endeavor so that they could keep his drive through to the end."_

 _Ace blinked at the pen and notepad on Izo's hand in silent wonder. The boy had always expressed his admiration for Izo's vast knowledge of various topics. Most of those topics were usually related to fashion, incorporating the hidden meanings and the history of materials, fabrics and, of course, gemstones into his designs and arts. Ace was one of the few that Izo would let into his studio to watch him work. He may be young and aggressive at times, but Izo had discovered that Ace can be quiet and respectful when he needed to._

 _Izo looked down at Ace, smiling lightly at the starry-eyed boy. "I asked Jozu for anything that may help with the workaholic road that Marco decided to pursue. He's not even in his mid-twenties but, with the amount of caffeine he consumes every day, he's gonna be having a mid-life crisis."_

 _Ace frowned, confused. "How does the red jasper help?"_

 _Izo rolled his eyes at the memory. "It doesn't. Jozu strayed from the conversation within five minutes of talking about ways to decrease Marc's workload." Izo leaned forward and lifted Ace up. He placed him to sit on the counter and allowed him to look over his shoulder to view the design he came up with. "A necklace would be impractical for you. You got into that private school, right? Haruta told me that they stress about the dress code there. The bead would be too obvious over your uniform. It'll also be distracting for you when you go to your martial arts and parkour class. So I'll put it on a bracelet. I'll also make it adjustable so that you don't have to come in every time you get a growth spurt. That is assuming that this bead is very valuable to you and you plan to wear it for a long time."_

 _Ace nodded, "Yeah, it is. How much am I paying you?"_

" _For now, forget about it. I'll add it to the list of things that you owe me for. Including having to lie to your parents about you being here without their permission_ and _without my agreement."_

" _Add that to the list I owe your entire family."_

 _Izo blinked, quickly piecing together the puzzle pieces Ace laid out. "Are you telling me that you got everyone in the family to do this while lying to your parents? I thought that Rogue and Roger are letting you off the hook. Now I know why it seems weird that your parents' lack of over-protectiveness seems a little off." Izo sighed, looking towards the side at the picture frame of his family on the counter. "And nobody told me about this arrangement."_

" _It's the Newgate family curse." Ace giggled, as though remembering a hilarious secret. "You see a kid, you have the instinct to fill out the adoption papers."_

" _Except you got dragged into it before you were born. Edward's your godfather."_

 _Ace blinked, staring at Izo blankly as though there was something wrong, as though what he said was wrong. He was getting quite a number of those looks from Ace lately. Quickly, Ace shook away whatever thought that was bothering him and gave Izo a grin. "Yep, he's Pops and you're Izo-nii."_

 _Izo could not help the grin that began to form. He didn't mind the nickname at all. "Okay. I'm your godbrother so you're calling me 'brother' in Japanese. What about Edward? Why are you calling him 'Pops'? I know that he's practically old enough to be your grandfather but he_ is _your godfather."_

" _Because he calls me his son," Ace said as though it was the most obvious answer._

 _He does. He calls all of his adopted children and his godson 'son' or 'daughter' with no shame or internalized motive. Even if not one his adoptive children called him 'father' or 'dad' – though, no one was ashamed to admit that they had let their tongue slip once or twice – the man was proud of them just as much as they were proud to bear the name 'Newgate' after their original last names._

 _Izo tore the piece of paper with the sketch separate from the notepad and clipped it on a clipboard. The notepad would be used too often to leave the sketch on it. "Who gave you the bead anyway? I'm assuming someone important?"_

 _Ace grinned in an unusually mysterious way, "A friend from the past."_

* * *

After Ace was formally recruited into the Organisation

 **[AN: Warning begins]**

"The results from your physical evaluation reveals that you are in almost perfect condition for someone your age. Your agility, balance, strength, endurance – you are a very athletic teenager. You said that you are turning seventeen on New Year's Day?" Robin looked at him, smiling at him in a calm way. Nico Robin was a family friend and the family's only psychologist – _'because no one is brave enough to handle Roger, Dragon and Garp,'_ Rogue had once said. She was the daughter of Nico Olvia, another who is a family friend. There was a pattern with Nico Robin's occupation throughout what Ace can recall of her in his past lives. It had always been something involving discovering the world's mystery. Whether through discovering history's hidden century or learning about mysterious conditions or disorders, she was not afraid to go out of her way to seek the world's mysteries and learn from it.

Ace nodded, "Yup." Robin's mother was his psychologist for the first few years since he 'collapsed' and sent to the hospital. She was also the one who diagnosed him. When Olvia retired, Robin had already graduated and had some experience with teen mental illnesses and disorders. She had taken after Olvia and registered to be Ace's psychologist. According to recently discovered information, Robin was also a part of the Organisation – _Seriously, Dad? What is up with your naming skills?_ – and appeared to be the Organisation's only psychologist.

"On the outside, your physical and mentality are near the required limit to go out on-field. The only thing you are lacking is the experience." Robin put down the clipboard on hand. "Unfortunately, there is one thing that could be hindering your performance on-field. Ace, you know that I know about your condition, but could you please tell me once again about it is?"

Ace sighed. He hated answering that question. "I have a mysterious type of Dissociative Amnesia Disorder. It is basically a type of coping mechanism that the brain developed to deal with traumatic events that happen in one's life. The brain brings up a sort of amnesiac barriers that 'blocks out' the memory of the traumatic event deep into the mind. The memory would only surface either on its own or due to triggers that may happen in real life."

"However?" Robin urged for Ace to continue.

" _However_ , my disorder is a little different from the known disorder. While not being able to recall the traumatic event or events is a symptom of the disorder, I have no known record or signs of any traumatic event that happened to me in my life." _Well, not ones from_ this _particular life_. "This makes the disorder a little unusual and 'out of the norm'."

Robin smiled as a way to ease Ace. It worked for a little but not really. "Can you tell me about these 'triggers'?"

"My triggers vary in different situations. Anything related to fire, such as heat, smoke and even the sight of the color, is one of the worst triggers. But, fortunately, I do not get triggered by the mention of the name." _I was literal flames in the first dozen or so worlds. After that, there are only rare times when I possess the power of flames._ "The smell of the sea is another trigger." _It was a less consistent trigger. The sea had been a big part of many of my lives at the beginning. But as I got reincarnated more, it became less and less involved in my life._ "Sometimes when I meet new people." _Only people I had encountered multiple times in my past lives. The Newgate's had been the worst. Luffy was amongst the worst, but only once. There were repeated episodes when I interacted with the Newgate's._ "Other times were triggered by phrases or words." _Some words were said in the same way in my past lives. There were phrases that I knew had a hidden meaning in some, or even_ many _, of my past lives._

Robin knew of his pain whenever he repeated those words like a broken record player. She tried to lessen the number of times he had to answer those questions but also knew that it played a vital part in making sure that Ace was aware of his disorder. There were records of people with dissociative disorders forgetting crucial information about their disorder. Although Ace had not shown any signs of forgetting information that was already discussed, Ace had revealed some information about his past lives on accident. It gave Robin the conclusion that Ace had sometimes mixed up information with things that he was told.

Ace gave her a reassuring smile, "Don't worry, Robin. I know why we're doing this. It's just… hard sometimes. There are times when I just forget that I have it and I actually live a relatively normal life. Then I get reminded in these kinds of situations."

Robin sighed, "I know, Ace. I'm sorry about this. It's hard for you _and_ me. It had been several years since we began working together." Robin had never liked the idea that the therapist is the 'helper' and her client is just a 'victim who wanted help'. She preferred to view it as both the therapist and the client _working together_ to understand something neither understood. She viewed her clients as friends. She was different than most of the one's Ace known in his past lives. He guessed that it was mostly because of how her mother was present in her life. He of all people knew how much having a parental figure in a person's life, whether by blood or not, can change so many things. "I consider you as a friend," she continued, "And it hurts to know that you are suffering and there is little I can do to help you. But, as a friend – and your therapist, obviously – I want you to be prepared to go on the field as soon as possible. And I want you to be aware of your triggers in case you have to do some solo undercover work."

[AN: Warning ends]

Ace blinked, surprised by Robin's sudden statements. "You want me to go on-field?"

"Of course," she smiled at him, genuine and honest. "I cannot stop you from pursuing this path. It is almost a guarantee that you would follow your parents and uncle's footsteps. Your family is great influencers to who you are and who you are becoming, especially seeing as how you always receive outstanding results in academics and your out-of-school clubs and lessons. You are referred to as a genius, a prodigy. In all honesty, I don't know how you do it. But I'm not complaining. It gives you a good head start for when you join the Organisation." She stood as she took her clipboard. Ace stood with her. "I will send the report of your evaluation to the Boss. Your training will start as soon as the Boss approves and when you are available. I believe Rogue had already made arrangements that you are to take training at any time you are available. Your training will mostly involve knowledge and experience building. We will be asking you to search up for certain topics, whether through the internet or around the neighborhood, it is entirely up to you. We will be conducting exercises that will involve situations you may encounter. This includes survival training, stealth and recon training, interrogation training and more. I will be examining your progress and will be reporting regularly to the Boss. Once the Boss deemed you are ready for a real on-field mission, you will be given a simple mission that is strictly recon."

"Gathering intel?"

"Yes. But only from afar. You will also be accompanied by another experienced agent or two as a safety measure." Robin led Ace towards the door, opening the door for him with a smile. "Of course, that is assuming you can balance the gruesome training session while keeping up your academic, club practices and lesson results, as well as make the time for your part-time jobs."

Ace groaned when his list of workload came as a torturous reminder. It took a while but Ace found himself appreciating and admiring Robin's dark sense of humor. "Why did I choose this life?"

Robin giggled, "'Why' indeed."

"Please tell me I actually get decent pay for this," Ace looked at Robin in hopes that his time would be worth something.

"Of course. You get paid according to your ranking in the Organisation." Robin closed the door behind them, still holding on to the clipboard in hand. "It may take a while for the Boss to assign you a mentor so, for now, you may explore the Headquarters and get to know your co-workers. I assumed that you are aware that you may encounter some _familiar_ faces here." The word 'familiar' was emphasized as a warning. Robin knew how unpredictable his episodes could be so it was a fair warning.

"Of course," Ace nodded in acknowledgment to the hidden warning. "Does anybody else know?"

"Only those who have known of it prior to your recruitment. Rogue, Roger, Dragon, Shanks and I know. The Boss is also aware but that is mostly for security and safety reasons."

"The Boss?" Ace tried to remember if he had even met the man he heard so much of but never had known enough to know his name. "I don't think I met him?" His voice ended with a question because he could not recall if he had an episode when – _if_ – the Boss was introduced to him.

"You haven't met him," a mysterious smile that is clearly hiding something tugged on the corner of Robin's mouth. "He was there but he stayed hidden."

"What for?"

"He liked to play this game as an excuse to get to know the new recruits without them being pressured by his status. It is quite an interesting and effective way to ease the recruits' nerves. Quite often, when the recruits meet him in person, they realized that they had interacted more than once before."

Ace wondered for a moment if he had met anyone at the party that he knew beforehand. But it seemed as though his memory was not working too well that night. The only thing he remembered was his very, _very_ brief speech and eating those amazing lemon tarts and high-tailing out of the party straight after.

Robin placed a hand on Ace's shoulder. "You know, if you want anyone else to know, you would have to do the honors yourself. The Boss already approved of this approach. We are spies, yes, and stalking – as Roger and Shanks had shamelessly commented multiple times – is a part of our job description, we are not opposed to the importance of privacy and ensuring as much comfort our agents can have in the Organisation."

Ace blinked at Robin's words, "That is completely different from the movies I have watched." _And some of the past lives._

Robin smirked at the thought. "I am aware. It is also completely different from what the Government expected but we are not one to follow them in such ways. We do our own thing and we are good enough that the Government could not do much about it."

Ace laughed. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

 **Author's Notes:**

 **Robin is a little difficult to characterize since her life is completely different from her life in One Piece. Oh well. I never actually expect any of the characters to be canon. If you haven't noticed, the characters are very OOC. I can't guarantee that there would be any characters that would be characterized perfectly, even with all the dimension traveling.**

 **As you can tell, I am very slow at world-building and even slower at plot-building. Please bear with me.**

 **About the chapter:**

 **\- The flashback is there as an explanation as to how Ace got his bracelet as well as an outsider point of view on how Ace was acting different since he 'collapsed'. Also, a bit of Izo and Ace interaction there.**

 **\- Also, the flashback reveals something about Ace that I kind of hesitated on. I know that it makes sense for Rayleigh to be the godfather but I also want to give Ace some similarities from the original timeline because so many things had changed. So I conjured a plan for Rayleigh. Can you guess what it is?**

 **\- Some information on Ace's disorder**

 **\- A new character! I plan for Robin to be a minor character but if you want to see more of her, you can comment on it and I'll think of something**

 **\- This chapter is longer than the others**

 **About the next chapter:**

 **\- Another character being introduced**

 **\- The plot slightly moving but not a lot. We still got two or three chapters until we get to the good bits**

 **Thank you for reading. English is not my first language so if there are any obvious grammar mistake that makes you wanna rip your head off, please inform me.**

 **Reviews are greatly appreciated. It helps with the writing process and motivation (this includes constructive criticism, ideas for the story and theories)**

 **~AJ**


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